


In Church of Lost Time

by macabre_trepidation



Series: Foxes and Kings, Swords and Things [2]
Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic, Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-13
Updated: 2017-02-13
Packaged: 2018-09-23 23:35:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9687431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/macabre_trepidation/pseuds/macabre_trepidation
Summary: "Guilt sat not in his chest but in his brain, as he wandered off far away from Henrietta. He wanted to escape for only a moment, but he couldn’t sleep anymore. His insomnia had worsened and with Cabeswater was gone, he had nowhere to go."Renee passes through Henrietta on a Sunday, and of COURSE she has to go to church. Guess who she sees there?





	

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for the comments and kudos on my last piece! It really means a lot because you guys are the reason I continued, and I really I like it! I have more ideas for these two crowds, so stay updated with my page if you want to see more stuff in the future!

Ronan Lynch did not care about religion, but he cared about his brothers.

Likewise the other two boys felt the same way. Declan used to use the time spent in church to silently apologize for the wrongs he had done to the family. He could have tried harder, pulled Ronan closer when things got bad, but years down the line it did not matter what he could have done. He knew now it was no use in praying to a god that did not answer him, so he called out to the other brother in silent desperation.  
Matthew Lynch was something new entirely, without a solemn thought in his head his mind was completely different from that of the other brothers. He was what kept them united and the only thing that stood between Ronan’s and Declan.

Every Sunday mass welcomed the same people at the same time. They knew each other from around town, but never spoke to each other. This was a time of individualism, caring for oneself and those closest to them.  
\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -  
The boys drove up in three different cars. Ronan was the first, and had decided to light a cigarette before he took his seat in the pews. He pressed his back against the brick wall and closed his eyes.

This week Ronan desperately missed his boyfriend. A week before they had driven Adam up to college and gotten him settled in his dorm. He was of course happy for him, but his life didn’t feel as vibrant as it had the past couple months. Guilt sat not in his chest but in his brain, as he wandered off far away from Henrietta. He wanted to escape for only a moment, but he couldn’t sleep anymore. His insomnia had worsened and with Cabeswater was gone, he had nowhere to go.

With so much going on in his head Ronan didn’t have time to register a petite figure headed his way until it leaned against the wall next to him.  
“Who’re you waiting for?” The voice startled Ronan as he looked down to see a girl slouching next to him on the wall. Her platinum blonde hair was cut short and faded into a rainbow at the ends. She was about his age and had on a bright orange t-shirt under faded blue overalls, which reminded him a little of Blue. He snapped his head back up to look her directly in the eyes. For a moment he felt compelled to give her a straight answer, but then he remembered who he was and decided against it. He put on an ugly smile.

“Oh, just my crackhead son. He told me to meet him here if I ever needed another hit.” He crossed his arms and looked away smugly. Instead of getting mad, she just looked at him intently.

“Oh? Well that’s ironic, because I’m actually meeting my crackhead boyfriend here. We were supposed to get married last week but, well, you know how crackheads are.” Ronan cocked his head to one side and smiled.

“Yeah, he’s been selling and smoking crack since he was five years old. You know how much a parent loves a dedicated child! We’re so proud of our boy.” Ronan wiped a fake tear from under his eye and the girl crossed her arms to mirror his own. “Yeah, we have the same name.” Ronan shrugged.

“Which is?”

“Ronan.”

“Hmm. That doesn’t sound like a very crackhead-esque name, but no judgement.”

“You know what they used to call him?”

“What?”

“Craisins.”

“Why?”

“Because he used to put crack in all his raisins.”

At that the girl let out a lively laugh, the kind that made him think happy thoughts and reminded Ronan of Adam. The thought of his boyfriend broke the flow of his banter and he sighed and looked away. The girl followed his gaze and gave a sympathetic smile.  
“You look like you have something on your mind,” she said. “Is it the crackheads?” Ronan was silent for a long time, then shook his head.  
“My--Adam.” He choked on the name. “My boyfriend just left for college.” It was oddly easier to confide in a stranger than to talk to Gansey or Blue or anyone else about Adam. The whole group was friends, and Ronan didn’t want their relationship to be meddled with by people who could influence them. Better to talk to someone he would never see again than no one at all.

“Hmm. Where?” she asked politely.

“Brown.” she moved a little closer to him.

“You think he isn’t gonna miss you?” Ronan shook his head.

“No. I--I think I’m afraid he’ll figure out I’m not enough for him.” Ronan bowed deeper until his chin was touching his chest, making it impossible for the girl to look him in the eye. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the girl look upwards with a confused face, as if trying to assess the situation.

“He wouldn’t date you if he didn’t know who you were and what you were capable of.” she said simply.

Ronan huffed. “It’s Brown! It’s an ivy! He’s, fuck, he’s the smartest person I know!” He threw his hands up in defeat and looked all the way up and banged his head against the church wall.

“Wasn’t he the smartest person you knew before he left? So if he didn’t want you he would have figured it out before.” Ronan looked at her with a deadpan expression.

“Sure.”

The girl took a deep breath.

“Are you so terrible that you would push this great thing in your life away, out of fear of it leaving you first? Cherish it. If he’s that important, he won’t leave you at all.” She pushed her hair behind her ear and nudged him with her elbow. “C’mon, let’s go. Our crackheads are probably waiting for us.” She pushed herself off of the wall and waited for him to do the same.

Ronan snapped his head up and squinted at her. “What’s your name, anyway?” he asked.

“Renee. Renee Walker.”  
“And what brings you to Henrietta, Renee?” She sighed.

“I’m just passing through, on my way to uni. I was supposed to get there yesterday, but my car broke down, so I’m waiting until my friend picks me up here.”

“Oh? Where do you go?”

“Palmetto State,” she said, gesturing to her bright orange t-shirt. “South Carolina.”

As she said that a loud truck skidded into the nearest parking spot and the passenger’s side door flung open, revealing a young man with blonde curls. He raced out the door and raced over to Ronan, elvish grin spread from ear to ear. Ronan smiled weakly at his younger brother as he pulled him in for a bear hug. Matthew was almost as tall as him, he observed. As they exchanged quick hello’s and Matthew’s eyes travelled to the Renee. His smile wavered as he tried to put a name to her face. After a moment, Renee decided to just introduce herself to save him from his frustration. She put her hand out.

“Renee Walker.” she repeated. His eyes widened and he shook her hand vigorously.

“Whoa! Renee Walker! I know you! Big fan.” he said. Ronan’s brow furrowed. She smiled. “I play for the Palmetto State Foxes.” Foxes. There was that name again. He’d heard it barely a week ago.

“Foxes? Like, Exy?” Ronan held his breath. The same people? It can’t be, it can’t be.

Renee nodded her head. “Yep! I’m a goalkeeper.” Ronan opened his mouth to say something, but decided against it. His eyes were glued to the truck that Matthew had just gotten out of. He watched as his older brother finally slid out of the driver’s seat and strode to the church doors. He made eye contact with Ronan and made a face that meant for them to follow him. Ronan, not usually one for following Declan, took the chance to usher Matthew away from the conversation.

“We have to go. Sorry, Rachel.” He directed Matthew’s attention toward Declan and he understood.

“It’s Renee. And of course, I’m coming in as well. It started at 9, right?” She pulled out a phone and turned it on to reveal the time. It was five after, and the Lynch brothers had never been late to church before.

“Yeah, bye.” Ronan grabbed Matthew’s wrist and pulled him ahead to meet Declan inside, where they took their respective seats and spent the rest of the mass in silence.

What the service was about that day, Ronan could not recall, but the girl with the rainbow colored hair stuck with him. He did not believe in coincidences, and he certainly was not about to let this fly by as his first. He didn’t see her leave the church on the way out, but he wasn’t about to find her. He had a feeling they would somehow meet again. Something about these Foxes were significant to him in some way, and he was determined to figure out exactly what it was.


End file.
